"You're the beast!" Jiang Jingwei barked in furious indignation. "You're helping a traitorous minister who brings ruin upon the country—what right do you have to act like my father? Besides, you were never my real dad to begin with!"
She did not know this middle-aged man, but she grasped their identity from his words—the Shenrui Army!
The extra Saints were the remnants of the Shenrui Army.
Back at the Red Sleeve Pavilion, the Shenrui remnants had attacked Yuanshi Tianzun and her. Looking at the situation now, they had long since defected to Zheng Wenhan and become their enemies.
And to think Yuanshi Tianzun had actually hoped to recruit them to their side.
The Palace Mistress, Guan Ya, Xiao Yuan, and the others, however, were thinking along the opposite lines: Zhao Kai's death meant Yuanshi's recruitment plan had failed, driving the Shenrui Army straight into the opposing camp.
A heavy weight settled over the hearts of the Saints from Return of the Dead, Elder Xu of the Azure Dragon Gang, and Retainer Zhou of the Yang estate.
The enemy Saints far exceeded their own in both quality and quantity.
Their plan to decapitate Zheng Wenhan within fifteen minutes was certainly off the table now. Forcing a battle would only leave them surrounded on all sides, waiting for the main body of the city defense army to arrive and allow the Zheng family to wipe them out in one fell swoop.
Retainer Zhou turned to Guan Ya. Adjusting how he addressed her, he gave a bitter smile. "Miss, is there still any need for a fight to the death? Take your friends and leave. I will hold the rear."
Elder Xu had also lost his fighting will, his chest tight with regret and indignation. He did not fear death, but he did not wish to throw his life away in vain. If tonight's assassination failed, the crumbling edifice of the Southern Dynasty would truly be beyond saving.
In the past, he would have felt regret at most, never indignation—after all, the court had been rotten to its core from top to bottom.
Yet now, just when the foolish monarch had finally pulled himself together, this was how it had to end.
Guan Ya exchanged glances with the Palace Mistress, Xiao Yuan, Xie Lingxi, and Queen. As the Empress—and a Scout by profession—she radiated an air of command, saying calmly, "I choose to believe in him!"
Guan Ya's trust in Yuanshi Tianzun was no blind romantic devotion. The contest between Stargazers was all about carrying out nine parts of a plan while keeping one part hidden; Yuanshi Tianzun could never lay his entire strategy bare to his teammates.
Revealing everything to them was tantamount to revealing it to the Imperial Preceptor, who shared the same profession.
Therefore, what they as pawns on the board needed to do most was press on with their mission, not shrink back on the brink of battle.
Once the women nodded slightly in agreement with her decision, Guan Ya called out in a clear voice, "Elder Xu, are you willing to die for the Southern Dynasty?"
Elder Xu sighed. "I am."
Guan Ya asked again, "Retainer Zhou, are you willing to die for the Yang family?"
Retainer Zhou let out a sigh as well. "Then let one man hold the pass."
The moment his words fell, a small sword shot from his sleeve, carrying wind and thunder as it streaked toward Zheng Wenhan like a shooting star.
Guan Ya and Elder Xu likewise sent their flying swords darting out to claim their target's head.
Xie Lingxi and the Palace Mistress lifted their voices, humming an impassioned melody that lent a surging momentum to the three flying swords, like wings on tigers.
The Saints of the Zheng estate sprang into action. Some summoned flying swords to intercept, some erected earthen walls to block the path, some directed animals like cats, dogs, rats, and snakes to surround the intruders, while others launched direct attacks.
In an instant, flames erupted, sword qi crisscrossed the air, wraiths wailed, and pestilence ran rampant.
Right then, the Shenrui Army Saints perched along the roof ridge suddenly turned their weapons around and charged straight at Zheng Wenhan!
Lady Chu's father led the charge, roaring, "Dog of a traitor! It's time to repay the blood debt of General Wu and the Shenrui Army!"
Standing behind the earthen wall, Zheng Wenhan froze in shock. His expression changed drastically, and he shouted in panic, "Everyone, save me!"
***
Zheng Wenshi galloped through the deserted main street, followed by the hundred-strong elite force that the Zheng family had groomed with mountains of silver over the years.
Though not quite equal to Tuoba Guanghe's Juque Army, every single man could fight ten foes at once and possessed cultivation. Pick any one of them and drop him into the martial world, and he would be a recognized expert in his own right.
The ten squad leaders were even lesser grandmaster-level experts, even if they had barely brushed the threshold of a lesser grandmaster at early level four.
Add to that their exorbitantly crafted armaments—armor-piercing crossbows, silver-thread nets, profound fire needles, thunderclap bombs, and the like—and even an expert halfway across the grandmaster threshold would have to think twice.
The reason Zheng Wenshi had kept this savage host concealed was to avoid scaring the enemy away prematurely.
His elder brother, Zheng Wenhan, had received a secret missive from Tianji Tower warning that the foolish monarch's partisans would launch a surprise assault on the Zheng estate tonight. The Zheng family had simply turned their trick against them, laying an inescapable trap and waiting for the prey to walk in.
As long as they eradicated the foolish monarch's lackeys, the grand enterprise would be secured.
Just then, a figure appeared ahead, blocking the path.
The man had ordinary features and an average build, dressed in black martial attire. He carried a heavy bundle on his back and held a burning torch in his hand.
Zheng Wenshi's gaze sharpened, and he barked coldly, "Who goes there? Anyone violating the curfew will be shot dead on the spot!"
He did not even bother wasting breath on the man. Unhooking a stiff bow from his saddle, he nocked an arrow and drew the string. With a sharp twang, the arrow shot out, piercing the man straight through the chest.
His heart destroyed, the blocker stumbled and fell to his knees.
Zheng Wenshi urged his horse forward at full gallop, drawing the longsword at his waist to lop off the man's head.
The man in black martial attire suddenly threw his head back, pouring every ounce of strength into a cursed shout:
"Li Ao of the Azure Dragon Gang is right here! Die, you Zheng dog!"
He swung the torch back and touched it to a fuse, sending hissing trails of white smoke into the air.
Zheng Wenshi's heart seized. The Insight honed from his path of swordsmanship alerted him to the deadly peril. He hurled himself off the horse, shooting skyward like a spinning top.
*Boom!*
A deafening explosion rang out alongside blinding flames. The horse was blown to bits on the spot, and the shockwave hurled up dust and tore tiles from buildings dozens of paces away.
Even as an expert at the peak of lesser grandmaster, Zheng Wenshi felt the impact churn the blood in his chest.
"General..."
The adjutant rushed over leading his own horse, lingering fear written across his face. "What was that?"
Compared to this thing, the thunderclap bombs produced by the Ministry of Works were like mere firecrackers, utterly beneath mention.
Zheng Wenshi's face was grim. "That's an item on the grandmaster level. But thinking they can assassinate me with that is sheer lunacy!"
With that, he leaped onto the adjutant's mount, ready to lead his men onward to the Zheng estate.
Suddenly, the rustle of roof tiles drifted from the rooftops on both sides of the street.
Looking around, they saw over a dozen men in black martial attire perched on the roofs, each holding a torch and carrying a heavy pack on his back.
Every armored elite, Zheng Wenshi included, paled visibly.
Without a single word, the men fixed their resolute gazes ahead, lit their fuses with their torches, and leaped down like devout martyrs.
*Boom! Boom! Boom!*
Explosion after explosion erupted in rapid succession. Expanding fireballs illuminated the night sky, and the buildings along both sides of the main street shattered under the concussive force of the blasts.
The tremors could be felt clearly several hundred paces away.
Zheng Wenshi stumbled out of the inferno, his armor in tatters and his body covered in charred, blackened burns. His helmet was gone, leaving his head bald and exposed.
His eyebrows and beard were entirely singed away. His skin looked as if it had been scalded with boiling water, oozing dark red blood.
Beside the shocking external injuries, his internal damage was even more terrifying. Massive hemorrhaging plagued his internal organs, and searing poison attacked his heart. Had his swordsman's willpower not been as unyielding as iron, he would have collapsed into unconsciousness already.
Even at the peak of lesser grandmaster, he had been unable to use his speed to escape such a dense, wide-area saturation bombing, surviving only by enduring it with his cultivation.
Apart from Zheng Wenshi, only three squad leaders had survived—one trained in beast taming, and two in earth-element spiritual power.
All three were on the brink of death, holding on by sheer force of will. For them, so long as they remained breathing to circulate spiritual power, even the heaviest injuries could eventually heal.
Zheng Wenshi turned unsteadily, looking back at the ground strewn with scorched flesh and gore. A copper taste surged up into his throat.
The elites the Zheng family had groomed with vast wealth were completely wiped out.
*Tap, tap, tap...*
Slow, measured footsteps drifted from the end of the street. An unkempt young man with scruffy stubble, dressed in black martial attire, walked toward them.
Zheng Wenshi stood slightly hunched, his breathing heavy. Staring at the approaching youth, he ground out through clenched teeth, "What kind of promises did Zhao Shun make to the Azure Dragon Gang to make you throw yourselves into death like this without a shred of regard for your lives?"
The scruffy youth gazed toward Tianji Tower. After a brief silence, he drew his eyes back and said:
"He promised us that our rivers and mountains would remain unbroken, and our nation and its people would know peace!"
He lit the fuse and charged forward.
The foolish monarch—no, His Majesty—was right: living in troubled times, when it is time to die, one should die.
Zheng Wenshi's eyes hardened, and he stabbed out two fingers in a sword gesture.
*Squelch!*
The youth's head flew off, but the headless body actually kept sprinting forward with the pack for over a dozen paces before exploding under the despairing gazes of Zheng Wenshi and the three squad leaders.
*Boom!*
This blossoming firework was dazzling and magnificent.
***
At Tianji Tower, Zhang Yuanqing stood on the observation deck, watching that brilliant spark ignite, flare, and then extinguish.
A human life extinguished like a lamp.
"Truly beautiful," he murmured. "To sacrifice oneself for ideals and ambitions is the most magnificent thing in the mortal realm, and the destined path of a knight-errant. This is a very good dungeon—better than any I've entered before."
Zhang Yuanqing turned his head. "Imperial Preceptor, how was this move of mine?"
Beside him, the Imperial Preceptor's face had contorted into a snarl, devoid of his usual transcendent, immortal grace.
"How did you convince the Shenrui Army?" The Imperial Preceptor's eyes were dark and venomous.
"In truth, whether it was the night raid on the Zheng estate or the Zheng family waiting with a trap, we both understood each other's moves clearly. What mattered most in this game was calculating the pieces. If you could account for all of mine, you would win. If not, I win." Zhang Yuanqing spoke calmly:
"When it comes to helpers, Zheng Wenhan holds boundless power, and the city defense army and Imperial City Division are teeming with experts. There was no way I could best him in a straight match. I had to devise a way to make him willing to 'play along' with me.
"And to make him take this gamble, I had to make him anxious—and make you anxious, Preceptor. That's why I racked my brains to build prestige and win over the people.
"Neither you nor Zheng Wenhan were willing to let me nibble away at you step by step. Thus, the moment you noticed me contacting various factions to prepare a night attack on the Zheng estate, you decided to beat me at my own game and lure us into a snare.
"To that end, you didn't even dare station too many experts at the Zheng estate, afraid I would pull back if I saw the odds stacked against me. After all, the top experts of the city defense army and Imperial City Division were all being monitored by the Yang family and the imperial clan.
"Yet without overwhelming numbers of experts, it would be difficult to wipe us out in one stroke. So you played the Shenrui Army piece. As it happened, I was also planning to win over the Shenrui Army."
There was no triumph or joy on Zhang Yuanqing's face. Still gazing toward the distant spot where the flames had surged, he said slowly:
"Zhao Kai was merely a discarded pawn to make you drop your guard. I deliberately took your female disciple and Lady Chu to contact Zhao Kai just to put him in your sights, allowing you to 'see through' my plan.
"Once you cursed Zhao Kai to death, you assumed I had lost any chance of swaying the Shenrui Army."
The Imperial Preceptor said in a deep voice, "Were you not?"
"Of course not. To uncover the truth behind the destruction of the Shenrui Army, one doesn't necessarily have to look for witnesses in the Southern Dynasty; the Northern military could serve as witnesses just as well." Zhang Yuanqing spoke with ease:
"Tuoba Guanghe entered the court too late. Back when Zheng Wenhan was riding high in the Southern Dynasty, Tuoba Guanghe was nothing more than an unrefined martial artist. There was no overlap between the two, yet they managed to reach an agreement. That meant someone of sufficient stature must have acted as a bridge.
"Back then, the one responsible for liaising with the Northern military was Zheng Wenhan. I deduced that among the Northern forces attacking Linxia, there had to be someone who had been in contact with Zheng Wenhan in those years.
"So a few days ago, I made a secret trip to Linxia. By having the Night Roamers among the garrison repeatedly interrogate spirits, I finally pinned down a target..."
Zhang Yuanqing looked at the Imperial Preceptor and said:
"Then I captured that Northern general alive, severed all four of his limbs, and brought him before the remnants of the Shenrui Army. To the Shenrui Army, I might deserve to die, but Zheng Wenhan is one of the two true culprits behind their slaughter. Naturally, his priority ranked above mine."
The entire plan rested on the premise that the Imperial Preceptor could not deduce anything regarding the Emperor.
Dragon qi naturally carried concealment.
And concealment was the bane of Stargazing.
The Imperial Preceptor glared at him with dark, venomous eyes, filled with both murderous intent and hatred. After a long silence, his figure dissolved into specks of light and dispersed.
At the same time, a notification from the Spirit Realm rang out beside Zhang Yuanqing's ear:
[Ding! Congratulations on completing the side quest: Eradicate Zheng Wenhan.]
[Ding! Side quest activated: Slay the Imperial Preceptor.]
Guan Ya and the others had succeeded.
With the completion of the side quest, a nebula mark appeared on his forehead, which quickly transformed into a blazing sun imprint.
The seal was broken!
A vast, pure divine power of the sun surged into his body, and a golden radiance emanated from within him, illuminating his surroundings. He had finally returned to the Dominator realm, and all the props in his inventory were unsealed.
Right at that moment, the entire Tianji Tower shook violently as if struck by an earthquake, and a deafening roar echoed from within its depths.
Zhang Yuanqing's hairs stood on end. A profound sense of crisis welled up inside him, and he yelled at the top of his lungs toward the distance:
"The boss is out! Consort Yuan, Consort Yu, come protect the Emperor!"
Chapter 877